Former Alabama defender Mekhi Brown claims sideline tirade in title game wasn’t reason for departure
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The way Mekhi Brown describes it, he left Alabama on good terms with Nick Saban and the football program.
In case you missed it or somehow forgot about his incident in the National Championship Game, Brown hit a Georgia player and was flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. He was then brought to the sideline and was called out by Saban. Soon after, Brown went after one of the members of the Alabama coaching staff and had to be held back.
Brown continued to play in the game despite the incident. Saban claimed he did not know about the incident in his post-game press conference.
Soon after the game, Brown left the program and landed at FCS program Tennessee State. As strange as that step down is, Brown’s explanation that it was his decision is even more difficult to explain. Why a player of his caliber would choose to go from most recognizable program in the nation to a school that will receive no attention nationally is a hard one to explain.
In a recent article by Mike Organ of the Tennessean, Brown claimed Saban wanted him to remain with the program.
“People think I left (Alabama) because of that,” Brown said. “But that wasn’t the case. I met with coach Saban literally a day after the game when we got back. We talked about it, he said it was wrong, but he didn’t want me to leave. He wanted me to stay. I left on really good terms with him. I will always respect coach Saban, he will always respect me. He told me I could always come back to visit if I want.”
Do you buy that one?
Here is a video of the incident if you missed it:
A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Michael Wayne Bratton oversees the news coverage for Saturday Down South. Michael previously worked for FOX Sports and NFL.com
